Glossary of geekery

We try to keep things jargon-free at Bookswarm, but occasionally the geek speak creeps in. Below you’ll find a list of terms that might be useful:

A/B testing

A/B testing is a way of working by which two routes are created and tested to establish which is the best to use as part of the final product.

Accessibility

The ability of a website to be used by people with disabilities.

Agile

Agile’ is a project management methodology, typically used in software development. It helps teams respond to unpredictability through incremental, iterative work cadences, known as sprints.

AJAX

Ajax stands for Asynchronous JavaScript and XML and is used for creating dynamic web apps allowing for asynchronous data retrieval without having to reload the page – in other words, information can change on the page without the user needing to reload the page. Good examples would be Google Maps and GMail.

API

Stands for ‘Application Program Interface’. An API is a set of commands, functions, and protocols which programmers can use when building software for a specific operating system. APIs are often used to enable different computer systems to ‘talk’ to another.

ASIN

The Amazon Standard Identification Number (ASIN) is a 10-character alphanumeric unique identifier assigned by Amazon.com and its partners for product-identification within the Amazon.com organization. In the case of a physical book, the ASIN is the 10-digit ISBN. For eBooks and audiobooks, it’s generated by Amazon.

Back-end

The back end of a website is the part hidden from view of regular website visitors. In the case of WordPress it’s another way of referring to the Dashboard.

Browser

Browser, or web browser, is the software used to view websites. Common web browsers include Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Internet Explorer.

Bug

A ‘bug’ is a coding error in a computer program. The process of finding and fixing bugs is called Debugging.

CMS

A Content Management System is a computer application that allows publishing, editing and modifying content, organising, deleting as well as maintenance from a central interface. WordPress is an example of a CMS.

Creative brief

A creative brief is a document created through initial meetings, interviews, readings and discussions between a client and designer before any work begins.

CSS

Stands for “Cascading Style Sheet.” Cascading style sheets are used to format the layout of Web pages. They can be used to define text styles, table sizes, and other aspects of Web pages that previously could only be defined in a page’s HTML.

DNS

Short for Domain Name Service. The system which translates domain names in to IP addresses. When you type a domain name in to your browser, DNS is used to identify the correct web server and point your browser to it.

Favicon

An icon associated with a particular website, typically displayed in the address bar of a browser accessing the site or next to the site name in a user’s list of bookmarks.

Front-end

Opposite of ‘back-end’. The front end of a website is the part visible to your users.

FTP

Abbreviation of ‘File Transfer Protocol’ – a common means of uploading and downloading files to web hosting.

GDPR

Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a free web analytics service offered by Google that tracks and reports website traffic.

HTML

Hypertext Markup Language is the set of markup symbols or codes inserted in a file intended for display on a World Wide Web browser page.

Infinite scroll

Infinite scroll is a feature that loads the next set of posts automatically when visitors approach the bottom of the home page or posts page. It’s designed to help visitors read through many posts without effort.

JavaScript

JavaScript is used to program the behaviour of web pages.

jQuery

jQuery is a user interface library for JavaScript. It provides interactions, widgets, effects, and theming for creating richer websites and applications.

Parallax scrolling

Parallax is a technique in web design, where background images scroll slower than foreground images, creating an illusion of depth in a 2D scene.

PHP

PHP or hypertext preprocessor is defined as an HTML-embedded scripting language that is used to write web pages. WordPress is written in PHP.

PPC

Pay per click (PPC), also called cost per click, is an internet advertising model used to direct traffic to websites, in which advertisers pay the publisher (typically a website owner or a host of website) when the ad is clicked. It is defined simply as “the amount spent to get an advertisement clicked.”

Responsive design

Responsive design is an approach to web page creation that makes use of flexible layouts, flexible images and cascading style sheet media queries. The goal of responsive design is to build web pages that detect the visitor’s screen size and orientation and change the layout accordingly.

Social media

Is websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking.

SSL

The standard security technology for establishing an encrypted link between a web server and a browser. This link ensures that all data passed between the web server and browsers remain private and integral. Commonly required for e-commerce sites.

UI

Abbreviation for user interface.

URL

User story

A user story is a tool used in Agile software development to capture a description of a software feature from an end-user perspective. The user story describes the type of user, what they want and why.

UX

Abbreviation for User Experience. User Experience is: “All the aspects of how people use an interactive product: the way it feels in their hands, how well they understand how it works, how they feel about it while they’re using it, how well it serves their purposes, and how well it fits into the entire context in which they are using it.” – Alben (1996).

UXPin

The online tool Bookswarm use to create wireframes.

Web analytics

Web analytics is the process of analyzing the behavior of visitors to a Web site.

Web hosting

In order to publish a website online, you need a Web host. The Web host stores all the pages of your website and makes them available to computers connected to the Internet.

Wireframes

A wireframe is a two-dimensional illustration of a page’s interface that specifically focuses on space allocation and prioritization of content, functionalities available, and intended behaviors. For these reasons, wireframes typically do not include any styling, colour, or graphics.

WordPress theme

A WordPress Theme is a collection of files that work together to produce a graphical interface with an underlying unifying design for a website or blog. These files are called template files. A Theme modifies the way the site is displayed, without modifying the underlying WordPress software.

Glossary of Geekery

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What Our Clients Say

“The Bookswarm team are very professional, really know their technology and social media, and above all love books.”

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“I can’t speak highly enough of Simon Appleby and the team at Bookswarm. They built a beautiful website for me and Simon was always available to help me learn how to use it.”

Pam Evans, family saga author, most recently of A Distant Dream (Headline)

“When it came to redesigning PHOENIX magazine’s digital platform, Simon and the Bookswarm team made the process from initial ideas and wire-framing to functional website as uncomplicated as possible. The overhauled site functions as a monthly digital magazine hybrid, and is easy for our team of journalists to use and update. We’re very happy with the final version and recently received an honourable mention for its design at the 2017 Folio: Eddie & Ozzie Awards – thank you Simon!”

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